In early December, the Senate passed the unreconciled version of an essentially unreadable GOP tax bill, and now, the moment of glory has arrived for the final version of the legislation, which CNN reports has cleared the Senate shortly after midnight on Wednesday after passing the House hurdle on Tuesday. Of course, this isn’t really the final version because there are a few “glitches” that reportedly need to be ironed out by the House on Wednesday morning, but those are mere formalities.
What is clear is this — the bill is on track to hit President Trump’s desk and be approved before Christmas Day. When that task is completed, congressional Republicans will have scored their biggest legislative win of the session, and they did so along party lines (including Sen. Jeff Flake of Arizona, who was the final undecided Republican). The final vote, 51-48, was declared by VP Mike Pence on the Senate floor. He also tweeted about the “historic WIN” that he says will work a “middle-class miracle for millions of hard-working Americans.”
A historic WIN for the American people as the @SenateGOP voted to deliver working families & job creators a TAX CUT for Christmas. @POTUS Trump kept his promise to deliver a middle-class miracle for millions of hard-working Americans – a great day for the American people! #MAGA pic.twitter.com/4G4gJj4tJ2
— Vice President Mike Pence Archived (@VP45) December 20, 2017
On Wednesday, the House will again pick up the bill for a re-vote, but there’s no indication that there will be any hitches in the process. Trump has tweeted his excitement while bashing the Obamacare individual mandate and announcing a Wednesday news conference at 1:00pm.
The United States Senate just passed the biggest in history Tax Cut and Reform Bill. Terrible Individual Mandate (ObamaCare)Repealed. Goes to the House tomorrow morning for final vote. If approved, there will be a News Conference at The White House at approximately 1:00 P.M.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 20, 2017
The tax plan, once it is signed into law by Trump, will undoubtedly spawn loads of analysis, but for now, CNN has made a calculator available for those who want a hint of how the legislation could transform their pocketbooks.